Earliblaze *

Today's apple (and photo) comes courtesy of a generous Ohio reader who mailed me six slightly oblate small-to-medium Earliblaze apples.

These have light ribbing, deep stem wells, and closed calyxes.

The streaky red blush over yellow green is bright and attractive with some deep crimson strokes. The peel is glossy and the blush showcases small but distinct light lenticels.

There's some bruising and flyspeck. These no-spray apples smell sweet with yeasty overtones

Special delivery

The below disgraceful example of the mail-carrier's art greeted me yesterday afternoon:

Not a staged shot

Some might say this treatment shows a playful creativity that should be celebrated. But what if that box had come crashing to the ground, what then? For it contained six apples from a reader, apples of a variety unknown to me.

A promising sign

The news today at Hutchins Farm in Concord, Massachusetts

Lodi vs. Yellow Transparent smackdown

Lodi (R) and Yellow Transparent (R), both picked too soon

I confess that when I bought this very green Yellow Transparent I suspected it might be a Lodi, but when I put it by a real Lodi the differences were clear.

Lodi is one of several varieties heralded as a "better" more modern substitute for the flighty Yellow T. Consequently I have been wanting to put them head to head for several years.

Get a load of that

This tree seems doubled over under the weight of its fruit at Nagog Hill Farm yesterday.

Envy (Scilate) *

This apple, like Pink Lady in the UK, is marketed to women. But if Pink Lady's brand avatar suggests a wholesome young mother, Envy is Pink Lady's more worldly sister, exotic and sultry.

Today we can finally blow past the clever marketing and taste the real deal.